"Thom Stewart" wrote in message
...
Richard,

I raced in the Cruising Class for years, finishing as high
as third BUT
I never had as much fun as when I had a novice female
crew. They didn't
give a **** where we finished as long as they where
sailing and
relaxing. There were times when the Tender had to wait for
us to turn a
mark so that they could pick up the buoy.

My advice, for what's it worth is; ENJOY YOURSELF, train
your crew but
be a easy captain to sail with.

Some Downwind tips. In light air, set your Jib & Main wing
on wing; set
preventer/downhaul on main and Barber downhaul the
Jib.(Whisker pole)
Sail the Jib enough by the lee to get boat speed.(I use to
give my crew
cookies and coffee so they'd sit still in the cockpit
after they got the
sails set) Keep boat speed up until you're in a position
to fetch the
Lee Mark on a decent Broad Reach.

As the wind increases Broad Reaches with a gybe. When you
get close to
boat speed set course for mark. Downhaul Sails until
you're not
comfortable with the wind strength. Remember that with
increase wind
strength you get increase wave size, which can give you a
chance to
surf.


Good luck and in the Cruising Class ENJOYMENT should be
your goal as
well as low point total.




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JML Sigs